One Last Adventure
by CaptainLepidus
Summary: A story that picks up where The Lost Stories left off.
1. Chapter 1

**Note: This is my first fanfic, I could use feedback, and please don't be too harsh.**

Chapter 1

"We appear to be surrounded," Selethen spoke, calm as ever despite the twenty bandits who had encircled the small band.

"Indeed," Horace smiled grimly. "Shall we teach them a lesson in interfering with sword masters?" His sword flickered out of his scabbard lightning fast. Some of the nearby thieves jumped pack a little.

Selethen already has his scimitar in handb, and as the two men conversed, they were actually sizing up their enemy. "Feint to your left, then spin round and follow me. We have to get out of their circle," the Wakir whispered.

"Sounds good. When do we-" and then Horace and Selethen leaped forward at the same time, their blades flashing as they came down on the unprepared bandits.

Horace, as planned, had made an attack to his left. He sliced an enemy along the face, and as the man cried out, he slashed another in the stomach. Then he spun round and burst after Selethen.

The Arridi, for his part, had rolled under one of the criminals, knocking him off his feet. Then, he had stabbed another in the back. His goal was to open a wide enough gap for Horace to escape with him.

The Knight was right behind him, spinning his blade so as to keep any potential attackers off balance. As soon as he cleared the circle, he turned around yet again to join Selethen in attacking their opponenents.

All this had happened in the space of seventeen seconds. The bandits, who had expected a few weak merchants, were now fearing for their life. As one, they lowered their weapons and ran.

"Should we pursue them?" Horace asked, who had enjoyed the fight. Life married to a Crown Princess left little room for such activities.

"Leave them be. You are supposed to be enjoying yourself here, remember?" There was a faint trace of a smile on Selethen's face as he studied the Araluan.

"This is what I enjoy," Horace grinned. "Still, Cassie is no doubt waiting for me back in the village. I suppose we'd better get going."

Horace and his wife, Princess Cassandra, had been celebrating their second anniversary. King Duncan, Cassandra's father, had noticed how much time they were spending looking after their small child, Halt, and decided they would need a vacation for this anniversary. He had contacted their various friends throughout the years, and Selethen had jumped at the chance to see the knight again. He and the Bedullin Asiekh, Umar, had invited them to stay at the Bedullin camp. Of course, Duncan had no idea that his Heir would be out fighting Arridi criminals while there.

"So, reckon those were Tualaghi?" Horace wondered as they walked back through the sand. "I thought we'd finished them off that time."

Selethen considered for a moment. At last he spoke, "I doubt those were Tualaghi. We did crush them. However, destroy a notorious group and more are sure to rise in their place. Some of the country men must have decided to try their luck where the Tualaghi had failed."

That made sense, Horace supposed. And the rabble had been nothing compared to what the "Forgotten of God" had been in their prime. Still, he couldn't help feeling a little nervous.

"Agh, I'm getting too cautious! Castle life has worn me down," Horace thought out loud. "I wouldn't have thought twice about it before now."

Selethen looked at his old friend oddly. "Caution is a good thing. You can never be too wary. In fact, remember how we got captured last time you visited here?"

Horace smiled at that. "I guess so. But gosh, caution is for Rangers."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Caution is something we are quite good at, Will thought. He had been sitting in behind a small bush for hours on end, staring up at the castle.

That and unseen movement. A Ranger could sneak up on anyone, even another Ranger. Especially if they were deep in thought.

He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Gilan's grinning face right next to his own. Will smiled back, and realized the irony. Gilan, of course, couldn't know that.

"Ironic, isn't it?" Gilan winked at him, making sure to keep his voice low. Before Will could say anything, Gilan continued. "No, I haven't developed mind reading powers. But all of Halt's apprentices turn out the same."

"I guess so. Now, Gilan, I'm kind of on a mission here...how the blazes did you find me?" He realized his voice was getting dangerously loud, so he lowered it a notch.

"That's unimportant right now. What matters is I'm relieving you of your job here. Crowley has a very important message for you, so I think you'd better head back." Gilan pointed with his thumb at Tug, who Will had thought was perfectly concealed.

"Relieved? A very important message? What is-" Gilan raised a hand to stop Will's questions, grinnning even more. As he settled down next to Will, he spoke.

"You'll never change, Will. Always asking more then one question. Anyway, it's unprecedented, but we decided to try this method out. You never know when finding a Ranger in the field might be useful."

Will nodded at the logic and reluctantly got out of his hiding place. "I'm to head back to where?" He wrapped his cloak around himself.

"Back to Redmont. Crowley is waiting for you there. Now go!" Will, about to ask more questions, thought better of it and set off, his mind buzzing on what it could be about.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

By the time Horace returned to the small Bedullin vilage, he had fully cleaned off any signs of battle. He didn't want Cassie worried about him, and even though she was a good fighter in her own right, he knew she would protest that he had been fighting. Of course, she wouldn't mind that he had defended himself; she'd be angry that he had went looking for trouble.

As he strode through the roads, he suddenly caught sight of Cassandra and his face lit up. He ran to her and kissed her. Though they had been married for 2 years, they were still excited whenever they saw each other. Particularly Horace.

"Now, what took you so long?" Cassandra asked after they had broken away. She pretended to be angry but really she was smiling.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Your Majesty. I shall try to get everything done immediately from now on." He mock kneeled and they both chuckled a little. Horace was still making fun of the fact that she was a Princess and he was a mere orphan from Redmont Ward. He asked her, "Why were you out on the street like that?"

"Waiting for you to return of course, dear. Umar has invited me to the most fantastic-sounding hot springs. We really must get going now..." And she dragged him away. For the millionth time, he wondered at how happy a man he was.

They entered the hot springs, which were indeed fantastic. Inside a stone building was a small pool, with water bubbling up from the bottom. The liquid was warm but not incredibly hot, and their were lily pads inside the artificial pond. Umar told them to enjoy themselves, then left quickly.

They quickly undressed and got in the water, enjoying its comfortable temperature. For a minute or two, they sat in silence, letting the spring water swirld around them. Then Horace broke the silence.

"So, any news?" He knew that she missed being in Araluan, able to administrate everything that happened around the kingdom. This was why she constantly asked for any news that came in through traders to be delivered to her.

"Nothing much important. Though apparently there have been some rumors about Will." She smiled a little.

"Oh, have there? What do they say?" As much as Cassandra missed hearing news from her kingdom, Horace worried about Will. He realized that everyone seemed to worry about Will though. And perhaps they were justified...Halt had been right that his apprentice was in danger years back when they had first come to Arrida, and Will had told of how Tug had warned him about a wolf shortly before it had attacked and destroyed Tug's ability to serve as a Ranger horse.

Cassandra's voice brought him back from his reflections. "Something very important." And then she leaned close and told him, and he smiled.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Will reached Castle Redmont late that day. He rode up into the gate, the guards recognizing him immediately and letting him through. He first went to his wife.

They lived together in Castle Redmont now. He went to their suite and knocked on the door. An exhausted looking Alyss opened the door. She seemed re-energized though when she saw him, and kissed him.

"I'm sorry, I've just come back from a mission. I'm a bit tired. I've really got to take a nap..." Will held up his hand to stop her, much as Gilan had done a few hours before.

"I've got to see Crowley anyway, so I'll leave you to rest. Then I expect an excellent dinner." He grinned, and she ruffled his tousled hair.

"We're eating at Jenny's this time. I've got a feeling that, if Crowley came here to tell you something, it's going to warrant dinner out." He nodded, admitting she was right, and gently waved to her.

"Well...I'll be back soon!" He sighed happily after she closed the door, then walked away. He had to seen his leader.

Crowley was staying in Halt's old cabin. Halt had moved out soon after marrying Lady Pauline, and the place was empty. No villager had wanted to go near it, as the reputation of Ranger's was still something along the lines of "dark and mysterious".

Crowley smiled as he saw Will coming in. He called out to the younger Ranger and waved his hand. Will waved back in reply.

"So, what's happening?" Will had always been very excitable, and he wanted answers immediately.

Crowley waited, pouring coffee for them both first. Will felt tortured by curiosity, but after the first sip of the black liquid, he calmed down a bit. Coffee was ALWAYS important, at least to a Ranger.

"Now, this may come as a bit of a surprise to you Will, but I've discussed with Halt and we've agreed. You see, the same thing is going to happen with Gilan."

"What? What's going to happen? Why me and Gilan?" Crowley chose to answer that last question first, knowing that it was the one Will cared about least.

"You see, you were both trained by Halt. And, honestly, we think it's Halt's fault. He was so famous, at a time when fame and Rangers didn't mix at all. You changed all that of course Will, but it must be hard to change your original ideas."

"What original ideas? What...I...what?" Will couldn't keep in his questions any longer. He was vaguely aware that he was being disrespectful to the older Ranger, but he didn't care at the moment.

Crowley simply smiled. "Halt was such a big influence, and you two must have felt like you could never be as good as him. This is why we think you two haven't chosen apprentices yet, at a point where most Rangers would have done so. Because of this, we've decided to choose them for you."

Will was stunned momentarily. An apprentice? And one chosen for him? Rangers had always chosen their own apprentices. Although, Will realized, though he had seen many potential candidates, he had never chose one. He couldn't place why.

"The boy is called Marro, and he has no knowledge of our choice. You will make him aware of it tomorrow, and his training shall begin the day afterwards." Crowley, usually lax, spoke with firmness. "You've got to do it, Will."


End file.
